Thursday September 15, 2011 7:07 pm

Apple ready to launch a Sprint iPad?

Sprint could be the next carrier to support the iPad. According to 9to5Mac, Apple and Sprint have finished a version of the tablet that is compatible with Sprint’s network and it will launch in time for the holiday shopping season.

Word on the street is that the Sprint iPad is a completely different model from the CDMA iPad that Verizon carries, even though both carriers’ networks use that standard. It’s unclear whether or not the iPad will run on Sprint’s 4G WiMAX network.

As far as the launch timeline goes, Sprint will start selling the iPad soon after it begins carrying the iPhone 5. While the reports that Sprint is getting the iPhone have yet to be confirmed by either Sprint or Apple, this should all happen at the beginning of October. It also speculated Sprint could offer users a much more “generous” data plan, citing the rumors that it would one-up AT&T and offer unlimited data on the iPhone. The site said Sprint could peddle the same plan for the iPad.

The timing could make sense, in light of the fact that Verizon started carrying an iPad compatible with its network shortly after it finally got the iPhone at the beginning of the year.

But what about the iPhone 5 launch date? There is widespread speculation that Apple’s fifth-gen smartphone will be revealed very soon. A Best Buy leak and an All Things D report both claim the phone will debut at the end of October. However, earlier this month Deutsche Telekom quietly started taking pre-orders for the device, which could mean invites for an iPhone even could come much sooner.

This article, written by Leslie Horn, originally appeared on PCMag.com and is republished on Gear Live with the permission of Ziff Davis, Inc.